While the U.S. Senate spent Tuesday debating, and ultimately failing to pass, the bill allowing the construction of the Keystone XL pipeline, a noxious attack on science was taking place in the House.

Framed as a play for transparency, H.R. 1422, which passed 229-191, would transform the Scientific Advisory Board of the Environmental Protection Agency, effectively gagging scientists, while handing power to people with direct financial interests in the industries regulated by the EPA. Science: out, Vested Interests: in.

The bill even goes so far as to forbid scientific experts from participating in “advisory activities” that either directly or indirectly involve their own work. This means that world-leading experts are banned from sharing their expertise in their own research. While the GOP are big fans of ‘industry experts’ a.k.a lobbyists playing a role in such activities (from which they have a direct financial stake in the result), they argue that having conducted peer-reviewed studies on a topic would constitute a conflict of interest.

“In other words,” wrote Union of Concerned Scientists director Andrew A. Rosenberg in an editorial for RollCall, “academic scientists who know the most about a subject can’t weigh in, but experts paid by corporations who want to block regulations can.”

So how are the GOP selling such a blatantly absurd policy?

Rep. Michael Burgess (R-Texas) sums up the flawed logic of the Republicans, arguing that the board’s current structure:

“excludes industry experts, but not officials for environmental advocacy groups.” The inclusion of industry experts, he said, would right this injustice.

“I get it, you don’t like science,” he told bill sponsor Rep. Chris Stewart, R-Utah. “And you don’t like science that interferes with the interests of your corporate clients. But we need science to protect public health and the environment.”

The role of independent scientific assessment of the impacts of these industries is the only way the EPA is of any value of credibility. Take that away, and you turn the EPA into a Trade Show where industry lackeys hard-sell the public and politicians with zero scrutiny. When it comes to the biggest questions about our environment – water, energy, construction – we need people we can trust are evaluating the impacts on public health, safety and environmental sustainability. The GOP shows once again demonstrate who they exist to serve – and it’s not America.

Author: Kerry-AnneKerry-anne Mendoza is an independent journalist.
She is well know for investigative reports on politics, economics and social policy and is author of Amazon best-seller "Austerity: The Demolition of the Welfare State and the Rise of the Zombie Economy".
She has been traveling to and reporting from the Middle East for 13 years, most recently reporting from Gaza during Operation Protective Edge, and making the film 'Palestine: What Hope Peace?'
After a career as a management consultant holding senior positions in Banking, Health and Local Government - she gave it all up to live in a tent at Occupy London and has been writing ever since. She is based in the UK.